---
title: Plain - How do I link my account?
sidebarTitle: Plain
---


# Overview

To authenticate with Plain, you will need:
1. **API Key** - A key that grants secure access to the API, enabling authorized applications to interact with Plain resources and services.

This guide will walk you through generating your **API Key** within Plain.

### Prerequisites:

- You must have an account with Plain.

<Note>Machine Users can have multiple API Keys to make it easy to rotate keys. Every API key also has fine grained permissions.</Note>


### Instructions:

#### Step 1: Generating Your API Key
1. Login to your [Plain](https://app.plain.com/) account.

2. Go to **Settings → Machine Users**. If you already have a Machine User created, you can skip this step. Otherwise, click **Add Machine User**.

A Machine User has two fields:

- **Name**: This is just visible to you and could indicate the usage e.g. “Autoresponder”
- **Public name**: This is the name visible to customers (if the Machine User interacts with customers) e.g. “Mr Robot”
3. Click **Add API Key**, select the required permissions, please refer to the documentation for required permissions for each feature, copy the key, and store it safely since it won’t be visible again.

#### Step 2: Enter credentials in the Connect UI

Once you have your **API Key**:
1. Open the form where you need to authenticate with Plain.
2. Enter the **API Key** in its respective field.
3. Submit the form, and you should be successfully authenticated.


<img src="/integrations/all/plain/form.png" style={{maxWidth: "450px" }}/>

You are now connected to Plain.
